Mission Mission

Yes, it’s on Valencia, but no, it doesn’t host live rock shows. It’s the chapel at St. Luke’s!

[via Abby]

Like what lies on the other side of the Hills of Income Separation; where to find Tiki Bar Naval Island (Fun fact: I just went to Forbidden Island for the first time last weekend, and I urge you to do the same, but only after checking out the American Pinball Museum); and of course, New Hipster.  Spanning the Bay all the way from Rusty Ship Graveyard to Those Oh So Colorful Salt Marshes, it also answers the most important question, “Why do we love Norcal?”

Because Hawk Hill.

[Link]

How does one open this door? How does that doorknob even work? Does it work? Does it lead to some sort of fanciful kingdom full of crazy doors with doorknobs in the middle???

The mysteries of the universe are too vast to ponder this early in the morning.

One of the latest from Jeff Diehl, who’s also responsible for Spots Unknown, which has featured all sorts of cool, nostalgic posts like this and this.

Damn.  Now I want some ice cream.

I don’t know if I’ve ever been so offended while laughing out loud at the same time in all my life. Something tells me that if our good buddy Peter Shih took this tongue-in-cheek approach instead of dissing homeless people and “49ers,” he might still be able to live in this city without getting spit on everywhere he goes.

Check out the whole video for a surprise visit by the Tamale Lady (not the mural version), as well as some poignant commentary on gentrification, starring everyone’s favorite albino alligator.

[Link, in case the embedded video above is blowing it]

(Thanks Adam!)

Here‘s a blast from before the bust of ’01. When Slanted Door used to be on Valencia and places like Mangiafuoco on Guerrero used to offer basic Italian grub and grog (“It has chianti and what else do you need in an Italian restaurant”).

Benders was Sacrifice, serving up rum ribs and voodoo pasta in a tiki setting (“Don’t ask about how this purgatorial “tiki lounge” fits in, it just does”).

Booze was referred to as liquids and Amnesia charged a whopping $2 for live shows. Over at The Uptown a good jukebox was defined as one stocked with Dylan and Morphine, but beers were $3 and the dude next to you could probably tip you off on a well priced nitrous tank.

The current de-gentrified Club Veintiséis on Mission near 26th was the gentrified 26 Mix, a “sound bar” offering up a high quality listening experience while you sipped on your suds à la Tokyo style bars which feature a premium soundsystem and choice djs.

Bonus interview with dj Spesh aka “dj Special K” of club QOÖL fame right here, who will surely get a kick out of this decade old frosty picture we’ve unearthed.

Our pal Lindsey tells us all about it:

The reclining swing at Dolores Park is one of the most terrifying things I’ve ever been on. You strap yourself into it, then with even the slightest push find yourself nearly inverted, hoping centrifugal force overrides gravity for just another few seconds. [link]

But is it more terrifying than the Tulip, or more gravitationally weird than that weird slide?

Right? Anyone catch them hanging out across the street in Dolores Park?